New Audi S3 vs Honda Civic Type R | Battle of the £50k hot hatches

This is the new Audi S3, and that is a Honda Civic Type R. And before you suggest that they're not true rivals, then consider this. They both produce around 330bhp from 2.0-litre four-cylinder engines, they both cost from around £48,000, and they're both very usable everyday cars that, when required, turn into sports car baiting missiles. However, I will admit that there are a few differences. The S3 is an all-wheel drive automatic, and especially in this Daytona grey paint, very under the radar, whereas the Rally Red Civic Type R is a front-wheel drive manual that'll You've got to factor in the reputation that these cars have as well, because while the Civic Type R is known for being an incredibly precise, extremely exciting hot hatch, the S3 is seen as being more pared back and, dare I say it, maybe a little bit boring. Having run the pre-facelift S3 for several months, I can understand where that reputation comes from. It was very quick and incredibly usable, but when it came to outright excitement, there were other hot hatches that did a better job. However, Audi knew this was the case, so for the new S3, there's been some rather interesting changes. The most important of which is the torque splitter on the rear axle. This gives fully variable distribution of power between either wheel that, unsurprisingly, opens up a wide range of cornering possibilities. On the way into the corner, you get more rotation, which means that you can settle the car quicker and get back on the power even earlier than you could before. And if you do get a bit greedy on the power coming through the corner, you can just feel the outside wheel helping to push you round, and that's something that you obviously didn't get with the pre-facelift car. It's not just faster, it's also more fun with it, and that's a pretty good recipe. To this end, there's also a new Dynamic Plus drive mode that slackens off the stability control and sends mostly torque to the rear axle, greater negative wheel camber, bigger brake discs and increases of 23bhp and 15lb-ft of torque. What's more, gearshift times under full load have been halved and responses have been improved partly by nudging up the idle RPM. The changes to the geometry are really clear as soon as you turn the steering wheel. You've got what feels like quicker steering, you've got what feels like a tighter front end, and also just the whole car feels more alert to direction changes. It's obviously not any lighter than it was before, we're still about 1.6 tonnes with the driver, but it does feel like this car has been given a new lease of life, and it's genuinely good fun. As always in the UK, the weather is very warm and sunny today, but on the rare occasion that it rains, the S3 really comes into its own. I honestly believe that very little would be more capable than this S3 on a wet, unfamiliar road. It's that good. I mean, fair play to Audi, they've brought the S3 far closer to the RS3 than I ever thought they would. And yes, the engine is nowhere near as characterful as the 5-pot in the RS3, it's more of a tool for propulsion than adding any kind of emotion to the drive. It plays the whole fast Audi thing very well, I think. I even like the way it sounds, you know, it's actually got a bit of purpose to it. Of course, it's augmented, a lot of cars are now, but there's a nice rough edge that actually gives it a little bit of character. And obviously, I've got no complaints about the speed, it is every bit as rapid as you need on the road, and some. However, I am disappointed to note that this facelifted S3 has a firmer ride than it did before. It's not like you're getting all those performance improvements without any kind of payoff. The ride has definitely got more of an edge to it, and it just makes the car, I think, a little bit less usable, which was a shame because that was one of its strongest points. They just dented it a little bit there. Without doubt, there's been a shift in the S3's balance. It's become more exciting and interesting to drive, at the expense of a little bit of comfort. But, if we're talking about hot hatches that get your pulse racing, then let me remind you where the benchmark is. Welcome back to the Honda Civic Type R, otherwise known as one of the best pound-for-pound performance cars on the market. The latest generation of the Civic Type R has been around for a couple of years now, and in that time, we've put it head-to-head with the Audi RS3 and BMW M2. On both occasions, it had a healthy price advantage, but today, it's a far more level playing field. So, how does it compare? Right, first things first, the seating position in this car. In the Audi, it doesn't feel particularly sporty. It's almost like you're perched on top of the car. It doesn't go low enough. In this, it feels really special. You're sat low down, right where you want to be, so it feels like you're an integral part of the chassis. That is a big tick for the Honda. Where the Civic Type R also excels over the S3 is with its steering. Of course, it's a far more tactile driving experience with the whirl-beating manual gearbox, but there's also far more feel through the steering, even if it is a touch too heavy for my taste. It means you can manage the traction deficit out of corners and get the most out of the available grip. And yeah, while you can't power oversteer like you can now in the S3, there's still more than enough adjustability on the throttle to really trim your line going into and through the corner. It's just another way of throwing shapes. In the dry, the Civic's body control and weight transfer is so tightly controlled that it feels more like a sports car, albeit a front-wheel drive one, than the S3. It's more precise, it's more tactile, there's more feel and, crucially, it's lighter to the tune of about 200kg and that's a lot in anyone's book. And also, when we talk about the differential in the Audi, it's great that it's got it now, proper system, but in this, the front diff is amazing. Along with the standard adaptive dampers, this weight-saving no doubt helps the Civic Type R to deliver a better ride comfort at low speeds. It's far from a limo and it would be a stretch to declare it properly comfortable, but out of the two, it is a little bit more pliant. Despite how it looks, this car is very easy to drive at low speeds. It's got plenty of torque, it's got a good driving position and, yeah, it's a manual gearbox so in a traffic jam it might start to get a little bit tiresome, but as manual gearboxes go, it's very, very good indeed. My only complaint with all of that is that when you want to turn things up a notch, I don't think the engine is as exciting as it was in the FK8 Civic Type R, the predecessor to this. It's a very linear power delivery, but it doesn't crescendo as much at the top end and I don't like the augmented engine sound, it doesn't really add anything. Like the Audi, this feels like an engine that is there to propel you forwards as effectively as possible. It's not really adding any kind of emotion to the driving experience. Thankfully, though, this incredible manual gearbox does a fine job of that. It really is one of, if not the best, manual gearboxes in a mainstream car on sale today. It is so nice to use, so beautifully balanced, the feel is great, oh, what a gearbox! I think you can see where I'm going with this verdict. Audi has pushed its S3 more towards performance, while Honda has toned down the looks and raw edge of the FK8 to deliver a more well-rounded, polished hot hatch. Nowhere is this more evident than in the cabin, where the Civic Type R has taken a huge step forward over its predecessor. It's still not quite as nice as the S3's, but it's no longer a reason not to buy one like it was on the FK8. If you're going to take your hot hatch on track, then the Civic Type R is the winner by a long way. It is the better performance machine in dry weather, for sure. However, as I said before, what I really like about the Audi is that you can get a hot hatch and you can get some of the hot hatch thrills, a lot of the hot hatch thrills, but you've still got five seats, you've got an automatic gearbox, a brilliant infotainment system, and you've also got styling, which is very, very under the radar. You'd never know what it was unless you knew, and to some people, that really appeals. You simply get in the car, enjoy it, have fun, and get out again, and when it comes to hot hatches, that accessibility of fun and enjoyment, and just being able to use it everywhere, on any road, in any weather, surely that's got to count for a hell of a lot. At the end of the day, though, the Civic Type R has more layers to its performance, even if they're not always as accessible if the environment isn't spot on. In short, you have to dig a little deeper to get the best out of it. Do that, though, and it will reward you handsomely, and for that reason, it's my pick of the two cars. Do you agree? Let me know in the comments section below, and make sure you subscribe to the CarMagazine channel and turn your notifications on so you don't miss any future videos.